How to remove the My Search Finder browser hijacker

What is My Search Finder?

My Search Finder is a browser hijacker. Following successful infiltration, it makes alterations to browser settings to promote search.mysearchfinder.co (a bogus search engine). My Search Finder also has data tracking capabilities, which are employed to monitor users' browsing activity.

Additionally, due to its dubious proliferation methods, My Search Finder is classified as a Potentially Unwanted Application (PUA).

Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Internet Explorer and other popular browsers are typical targets of browser hijackers. They reassign the homepage, default search engine and new tab/window URLs to the addresses of fake search engines. My Search Finder promotes search.mysearchfinder.co in this fashion.

To elaborate, new browser tabs/windows opened and each search query typed into the URL bar all redirect to search.mysearchfinder.co. These bogus search engines are usually unable to provide unique results, and so they tend to redirect to (or cause redirection chains ending with) legitimate sites.

Note that search.mysearchfinder.co is no exception to this - it redirects to Yahoo (search.yahoo.com), a genuine search engine. Recovering the affected browser is impossible, unless the browser hijacker is removed - any changes users attempt to make to their browsers are automatically reset, if access to the settings is allowed at all.

My Search Finder can record browsing activity (URLs visited, web pages viewed, search queries typed, etc.) and gather personal information extracted from it (IP addresses, geolocations and other details). The collected data is typically shared with third parties (potentially, cyber criminals) seeking to misuse it for profit.

Therefore, the presence of data-tracking content on systems can lead to serious privacy issues, financial loss and even identity theft. To ensure device and user safety, all suspicious applications and browser extensions/plug-ins must be eliminated immediately upon detection.

Threat Summary:

Name	My Search Finder
Threat Type	Browser Hijacker, Redirect, Search Hijacker, Toolbar, Unwanted New Tab.
Browser Extension(s)	My Search Finder, MySearchFinder
Promoted URL	search.mysearchfinder.co
Serving IP Address (search.mysearchfinder.co)	52.205.60.251
Affected Browser Settings	Homepage, new tab URL, default search engine.
Symptoms	Manipulated internet browser settings (homepage, default internet search engine, new tab settings). Users are forced to visit the hijacker's website and search the internet using their search engines.
Distribution methods	Deceptive pop-up ads, free software installers (bundling), fake Flash Player installers.
Damage	Internet browser tracking (potential privacy issues), display of unwanted ads, redirects to dubious websites.
Malware Removal (Windows)	To eliminate possible malware infections, scan your computer with legitimate antivirus software. Our security researchers recommend using Combo Cleaner. ▼ Download Combo Cleaner To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Combo Cleaner. 7 days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by Rcs Lt, the parent company of PCRisk.com read more.

Better Browsing, Get Recipes Now, Plenty O' Apps and Easy Forms are some examples of other browser hijackers. This software may seem legitimate and useful, and people are often tempted into download/installation with offers of "useful" features.

In fact, the functions promised rarely work as promised and, in most cases, do not work at all. This is common to all PUAs. These unwanted apps have just one purpose: to generate revenue for the developers. Rather than delivering any real value, PUAs hijack browsers, cause redirects, run intrusive ad campaigns and track private data.

How did My Search Finder install on my computer?

Some PUAs (including My Search Finder) have "official" download web pages. This deceptive marketing technique of pre-packing regular products with unwanted or malicious additions is termed "bundling".

Rushing download/installation processes (e.g. ignoring terms, skipping steps, using pre-set options, etc.) increases the risk of unintentionally allowing bundled or dubious content into devices. Intrusive advertisements proliferate these apps as well. When clicked, they can execute scripts to stealthily download/install PUAs.

How to avoid installation of potentially unwanted applications

All products should be researched before download/installation or purchase. Use only official and verified download channels. Unofficial and free file-hosting websites, P2P sharing networks (BitTorrent, eMule, Gnutella, etc.) and other third party downloaders commonly offer deceptive and bundled content, and are therefore untrusted.

Treat download and installation processes with caution. Read the terms, explore all available options, use the "Custom/Advanced" settings and opt-out of additional apps, tools, features and so on. You are advised to exercise caution when browsing.

Intrusive ads often seem legitimate and harmless, however, they can redirect to highly dubious sites (e.g. gambling, pornography, adult-dating, etc.).

If you encounter ads/redirects of this kind, inspect the system and immediately remove all suspect applications and browser extensions/plug-ins. If your computer is already infected with My Search Finder, we recommend running a scan with Combo Cleaner Antivirus for Windows to automatically eliminate this browser hijacker.

My Search Finder browser hijacker asking for various permissions:

Website promoting My Search Finder browser hijacker:

Appearance of My Search Finder browser hijacker (GIF):

Instant automatic malware removal: Manual threat removal might be a lengthy and complicated process that requires advanced IT skills. Combo Cleaner is a professional automatic malware removal tool that is recommended to get rid of malware. Download it by clicking the button below:
▼ DOWNLOAD Combo Cleaner By downloading any software listed on this website you agree to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. To use full-featured product, you have to purchase a license for Combo Cleaner. 7 days free trial available. Combo Cleaner is owned and operated by Rcs Lt, the parent company of PCRisk.com read more.

Quick menu:

• What is My Search Finder?
• STEP 1. Uninstall My Search Finder application using Control Panel.
• STEP 2. Remove search.mysearchfinder.co redirect from Internet Explorer.
• STEP 3. Remove My Search Finder browser hijacker from Google Chrome.
• STEP 4. Remove search.mysearchfinder.co homepage and default search engine from Mozilla Firefox.
• STEP 5. Remove search.mysearchfinder.co redirect from Safari.
• STEP 6. Remove rogue plug-ins from Microsoft Edge.

My Search Finder browser hijacker removal:

Windows 11 users:

Right-click on the Start icon, select Apps and Features. In the opened window search for the application you want to uninstall, after locating it, click on the three vertical dots and select Uninstall.

Windows 10 users:

Right-click in the lower left corner of the screen, in the Quick Access Menu select Control Panel. In the opened window choose Programs and Features.

Windows 7 users:

Click Start (Windows Logo at the bottom left corner of your desktop), choose Control Panel. Locate Programs and click Uninstall a program.

macOS (OSX) users:

Click Finder, in the opened screen select Applications. Drag the app from the Applications folder to the Trash (located in your Dock), then right click the Trash icon and select Empty Trash.

In the uninstall programs window: look for any recently installed suspicious applications (for example, "My Search Finder"), select these entries and click "Uninstall" or "Remove".

After uninstalling the potentially unwanted applications that cause browser redirects to the search.mysearchfinder.co website, scan your computer for any remaining unwanted components. To scan your computer, use recommended malware removal software.

My Search Finder browser hijacker removal from Internet browsers:

Video showing how to remove browser redirects:

Remove malicious add-ons from Internet Explorer:

Click the "gear" icon (at the top right corner of Internet Explorer), select "Manage Add-ons". Look for any recently installed suspicious extensions, select these entries and click "Remove".

Change your homepage:

Click the "gear" icon (at the top right corner of Internet Explorer), select "Internet Options", in the opened window remove hxxp://search.mysearchfinder.co and enter your preferred domain, which will open each time you launch Internet Explorer. You can also enter about: blank to open a blank page when you start Internet Explorer.

Change your default search engine:

Click the "gear" icon (at the top right corner of Internet Explorer), select "Manage Add-ons". In the opened window, select "Search Providers", set "Google", "Bing", or any other preferred search engine as your default and then remove "My Search Finder".

Optional method:

If you continue to have problems with removal of the search.mysearchfinder.co redirect, reset your Internet Explorer settings to default.

Windows XP users: Click Start, click Run, in the opened window type inetcpl.cpl In the opened window click the Advanced tab, then click Reset.

Windows Vista and Windows 7 users: Click the Windows logo, in the start search box type inetcpl.cpl and click enter. In the opened window click the Advanced tab, then click Reset.

Windows 8 users: Open Internet Explorer and click the gear icon. Select Internet Options.

In the opened window, select the Advanced tab.

Click the Reset button.

Confirm that you wish to reset Internet Explorer settings to default by clicking the Reset button.

Remove malicious extensions from Google Chrome:

Click the Chrome menu icon  (at the top right corner of Google Chrome), select "More tools" and click "Extensions". Locate "My Search Finder" and other recently-installed suspicious browser add-ons, and remove them.

Change your homepage:

Click the Chrome menu icon  (at the top right corner of Google Chrome), select "Settings". In the "On startup" section, disable "My Search Finder" (or simply "MySearchFinder"), look for a browser hijacker URL (hxxp://www.search.mysearchfinder.co) below the “Open a specific or set of pages” option. If present, click on the three vertical dots icon and select “Remove”.

Change your default search engine:

To change your default search engine in Google Chrome: Click the Chrome menu icon  (at the top right corner of Google Chrome), select "Settings", in the "Search engine" section, click "Manage search engines...", in the opened list look for "search.mysearchfinder.co", when located click the three vertical dots near this URL and select "Remove from list".

Optional method:

If you continue to have problems with removal of the search.mysearchfinder.co redirect, reset your Google Chrome browser settings. Click the Chrome menu icon  (at the top right corner of Google Chrome) and select Settings. Scroll down to the bottom of the screen. Click the Advanced… link.

After scrolling to the bottom of the screen, click the Reset (Restore settings to their original defaults) button.

In the opened window, confirm that you wish to reset Google Chrome settings to default by clicking the Reset button.

Remove malicious plug-ins from Mozilla Firefox:

Click the Firefox menu (at the top right corner of the main window), select "Add-ons". Click on "Extensions" and remove "My Search Finder", as well as all other recently installed browser plug-ins.

Change your homepage:

To reset your homepage, click the Firefox menu (at the top right corner of the main window), then select "Options", in the opened window disable "My Search Finder", remove hxxp://search.mysearchfinder.co and enter your preferred domain, which will open each time you start Mozilla Firefox.

Change your default search engine:

In the URL address bar, type about:config and press Enter.
Click "I'll be careful, I promise!".
In the search filter at the top, type: "extensionControlled"
Set both results to "false" by either double-clicking each entry or clicking the button.

Optional method:

Computer users who have problems with search.mysearchfinder.co redirect removal can reset their Mozilla Firefox settings.

Open Mozilla Firefox, at the top right corner of the main window, click the Firefox menu, in the opened menu, click Help.

Select Troubleshooting Information.

In the opened window, click the Refresh Firefox button.

In the opened window, confirm that you wish to reset Mozilla Firefox settings to default by clicking the Refresh Firefox button.

Remove malicious extensions from Safari:

Make sure your Safari browser is active and click Safari menu, then select Preferences...

In the preferences window select the Extensions tab. Look for any recently installed suspicious extensions and uninstall them.

In the preferences window select General tab and make sure that your homepage is set to a preferred URL, if its altered by a browser hijacker - change it.

In the preferences window select Search tab and make sure that your preferred Internet search engine is selected.

Optional method:

Make sure your Safari browser is active and click on Safari menu. From the drop down menu select Clear History and Website Data...

In the opened window select all history and click the Clear History button.

Remove malicious extensions from Microsoft Edge:

Click the Edge menu icon  (at the top right corner of Microsoft Edge), select "Extensions". Locate any recently-installed suspicious browser add-ons, and remove them.

Change your homepage and new tab settings:

Click the Edge menu icon  (at the top right corner of Microsoft Edge), select "Settings". In the "On startup" section look for the name of the browser hijacker and click "Disable".

Change your default Internet search engine:

To change your default search engine in Microsoft Edge: Click the Edge menu icon  (at the top right corner of Microsoft Edge), select "Privacy and services", scroll to bottom of the page and select "Address bar". In the "Search engines used in address bar" section look for the name of the unwanted Internet search engine, when located click the "Disable" button near it. Alternatively you can click on "Manage search engines", in the opened menu look for unwanted Internet search engine. Click on the puzzle icon near it and select "Disable".

Optional method:

If you continue to have problems with removal of the search.mysearchfinder.co redirect, reset your Microsoft Edge browser settings. Click the Edge menu icon  (at the top right corner of Microsoft Edge) and select Settings.

In the opened settings menu select Reset settings.

Select Restore settings to their default values. In the opened window, confirm that you wish to reset Microsoft Edge settings to default by clicking the Reset button.

• If this did not help, follow these alternative instructions explaining how to reset the Microsoft Edge browser.

Summary:

A browser hijacker is a type of adware infection that modifies Internet browser settings by assigning the homepage and default Internet search engine settings to some other (unwanted) website URL. Commonly, this type of adware infiltrates operating systems through free software downloads. If your download is managed by a download client, ensure that you decline offers to install advertised toolbars or applications that seek to change your homepage and default Internet search engine settings.

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